Catalyst preparation



Sept. 24, 1946.

. 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 31m April 25, 1942 archigroste f, nartiesviugokiai 'a ssign'or to Phillips Petroleum Compa'nyga cjorp'oratlonfjol 'Ifhisinventionrelatesfbroad 7 tion or catalytic materials. and more specifically to the shaping of materialsfpossessing, catalytic Patented Sept. '24, 1946 Y D law r vi 7 ntiaaaita;z;. 194a,seriaiuoruosi activity into suitable f orrrls torenderv them more em ci'ent fog-,u'se inthejvarious purposesto which they. a fi i d' .1 Th i eni pn ates m re, particularly to the preparation of catalytic, masses of compounds 'whichpo's'sesst'he property of co.-

hering in rigid. self'esupport'ing units under con- I ditions hereinafter specified; the'form of the units permitting the catalyst and catalyzed -rnaterial oser and more' efiective. contact to come into during reaction.

' 'In the ."e'ntlre history oi. catalysis one the major problems .has'j'lbeen ,that of i'bringingthe be continued fora satisfactorily long j period of time. i

with a charge'material the longer operation may continue without time-consuming reviviflcationsteps being necessary and the more efllcientis the operation. According to one theory widely accepted (see fca'talysia? by Berkrnan, Morrell ;and Egloff), catalysis is a surface phenomenon. Catalytic activity isbelieved to be due toiunsaturated or unsatisfied valence forces'ln atoms," by virtue of their position with respect to other atoms in the materialgf'lhese "forces are belicved to be smallest within the body f ftheimateritl, greater The longer a" catalyst can bemaintained free, active surfacelforcontact with the (Ortizassa) i alist nely pulverized; catalysts of operation is; frequently subject to;-;th e disadvantages that "channeling" takes] placeand that t a portion. of the bed is washed away/in 'the treatthrough a (mass; of the c tt i ysflls .e eSS ve. j 1 Alternatively;finely-divided atalyst-may be x a catalyst into intimate,-.,efiective contact; with. the

'chajrge material tobecatalyzedand or maintaining its surface so that .this'intimate, contact mayv near and at the surfaces where'these forces are unbalanced, and greatest on the edges and at points; A rrjiaterial amorphousin physical makeup'is' believed'to be more actiyecat'aIyticalIy than 1 if used in crystalline form; sinceincrystaIs secondary forces or valencesareconsidered to be directed toward the crystals center, whereas in amorphous bodies these val'ences fare directedtO- ward the outside of the'unitpimaterial. lherefore it is necessary that there- ,be maintained the largest practicablesurface area whichmay be broughtinto 'contactiwith the material tobe I catalyzed. In the case of'a'liquid orvap'or'eatalyst, the surface 1con'tactfarea, approaches a the infinite' an'd is limited theoretically only bythe number of molecules in the catalyst. When dealing wlth'a solid catalyst, therefore, itisdesirable to use it'ina form'which'presehts the greatest practicable surface area, so'that "the greatest proportion of the catalyst in the reaction. zone actually takes part in catalyzing the reaction an n the highest catalystei llciencyis obtained.

Furthermore, the rne'thodiof, handling "and applying the catalyst tojanyglvenxpurpose is 'dictated by the'physIcaI conditionjof the catalyst and the requirements of thebu pose. The more finely divided a catalyst mass is, the greatenthe contact area presented; Therefore, where'prac ed efiluent; stream. 1 Also {the pressure drop mixed with a liquid, either thelid'uid. bei'ngft'reat- Jed orsan auxiliary slurry-forming liqui resulting suspension or, slurry pumped through a reaction zone 1 where itiis' exposed to the "conditions"adjudge'd best ioncarrying out the reaction: This operating system is-comm'only' designated the "fluidcatalyst method; However, this method of handling the-catalyst requires either that the catalyst be settled out to' separateit from the'reactio'n mixture and the charge stock or the residue-from thereacti'on, or that the em I tire liquid-material in' whatever condition it may exist'be'vaporized orfiltered ofi from the catalyst, or that'other special meansbe employed to remove the treated liquid'from the catalyst which may then he r eused, regenerated or discarded .asdesired.

' Charge stocks" in vapor form may also be brought into contact with afflnely divided catalyst, although again-inmany cases channeling 'of the thro gh-p'a ssir 'lg vapors occurs' with inefllcient results.

and equipment for its. rejuvenationsince gem erallyit is not practicablefto regenerate apowdered catalystin situ. n v

' Anothenmetho'd or preparing catalysts heretofore. employed is that of pressing, extruding lor otherwiseiforcinga granular or' powdered catalyst materialintc various shapes under certain con- [ditions in anl endeavor to insure thematerialretaining the resulting shapeuuringreaction, and

regeneration or revivification. I These forms may be rods; cylinders, spheres, spools, etc. OfVariOUS shapes, sizes, dimensions and proportions. The main purposes of. this procedure are four:- ('1) to, permit'ea'sy' handling; (2) to;increase the,con-

tact surface ..of. a given amqunt'of cata1yst;-(3) 1 to improve the passageor liquidor vaporthrough the catalyst while increasing the lengthof; time between regenerations; and,..(4 inlthe; case of relatively volatilefc'atalyst, suchas metal'halides, to prevent otminlmizecatalyst losses by volatilization. However, theresulting shapes do not have adequate strength,- rigidity,- crushing resistance, res'istance 'to abrasion upon handling, and revery finely; comminuted Another difll'culty 'ls thatf'handling the spent a finelydivided'catalyst calls for special methods I distinct advantage in anycatalytic process.

result is the deposition of carbon on the surface This carbonaceous coating soon blankets the surface of the catalyst, anecessitatof the catalyst.

ing removal of the coating before the catalyst can continue to promote the reaction. In some com'-..

mercial operations now well-known to the industry the active life of the catalyst is only three to ten minutes on-stream after which the carbon is removed by burning, to reactivate the mass and permit efficient operation of the process. The extra equipment required for this revivification operation and the time lostfrom productive-operation during the regeneration part of the cycle adds .greatlyto the costof the operation. The provision of catalyst in forms which permit easier and quicker removal of waste and deleterious material formed during the reaction cycle a ne main object of this invention, therefore, isto provide a'form of catalyst from which extraneous matter maybe removed by combustion, by solvents or by other means with the maximum of ease, simplicity and at a minimum cost in time and money.

Another problem faced by'the operator. of a catalytic unit is that of placing :the catalyst in the reaction chamberinsuch manner that all portions of the catalyst are brought into contact with the reaction materials in the same degree. It the form and condition of the catalyst mass, or units of which that mass is composed, are such that the catalyst can pack together at irregular intervals, presenting little space for passage of liquid or vapor, the resultis that the charge channels in passing through, overworking part of the catalyst while the remainder, in the closely packed sections, remains out of contact with the charge, resulting in inefficient, expensive operation. Another object of this invention, therefore, is to provide a catalyst form which prevents or minimizes channeling and bring all parts of the catalyst into comparatively equal contact with the charge stock. y

In the use of volatile catalysts such as metal chlorides, for example, aluminum, ferric, stannic, stannous, and titanium chlorides, the inevitable result of reactions carried out at moderately elevated temperatures is a continuous loss of catalyst by volatilization with a'gradual choking of vapor and condenser lines and contamination of the product with the condensed catalyst. An additional object of the presentinvention is to prevent volatilization of solid or liquid catalysts, the vaporization points of which lie in' or near the temperature range of the reaction, by preparing such catalysts in solid briquette-typ forms in a special manner.

One characteristic of some metal halide catalysts used to promote hydrocarbon reactions is that, as reaction continues, a tarry, unctuous mass forms on the surface. effectually blanketing the catalyst and preventing it from "exercising its effect on the reaction. If the charge stock flows over a properly formed catalyst as a liquid or film or if the reaction product formed are liquid at the operating temperature, the flow of this nquid will tend to remove this tarry material as fast as it is formed, preventing the blanketing effect so detrimental to efficient catalyst activity. Or, ifonly vapors are present in contact with the catalyst, the presence of uniform spaces for the 4. passage of reflux orother liquid over and around the catalystpieces facilitates .removal of this tarry blanket by means of solvents or other means which may be employed. Still another object of this invention. is to facilitate removal of undesirable side-reaction products or foreign matter from the catalyst.

istic a catalyst.

' pass and thus come into contact more intimately with a greater catalyst surface. Othermaterials are'more amorphous in physical form or crystallize in such formas tomake'angessentially impervious massof the catalyst in bulk. Preparaftion of a solid catalyst, in pellet ,form, for. example,-in such manner thatthe pellet is composed of an aggregation of either'porous or non-porous particles of irregular shape wlth interstices between; and without the use of a, compressive or other force strong enough to crush'the individual particles results in a pellet having highporosity and comparatively high compressive strength. Such a catalyst is far more efliclent than. a elleted catalyst ofe'ither. crystalline or amorphous material in afinely divided state, which presents only the outer surface of the individual pellet,

or the outer surface plus microscopic ,or submicroscopic pores as contact area An object of this invention is to prepare such'a highly eflicient and comparatively'rugged' type of catalyst.

Numerous other objects will be obvious from the description given herein.

In the accompanying drawings;

Fig. 1 illustrates typical catalyst shapes into which the'catalyst may be formed by the process of the invention.

Fig. '2 is a macroscopic fragmentary section of a catalyst shapeprepared byfthe invention.

In accordance with my invention, in one aspect, a mass of catalyst particles is shaped by exerting mechanical pressure thereupon while the particles are heated to a temperature suchv as to cause bonding of the particles at the points of contact under'the pressureexerted. This causes bonding of the particles by welding or fusion at the points of contact and prevents filling, obstruction, or destruction of the voids between the catalyst particles. Upon cooling and/or releasing the pressure, preferably substantially simultaneously; a rigid catalyst body is obtained which may advantageously be used in packing a catalyst tower. The resultingbody retainssubstant ially the porosity of the originallgranular or powdered mass because the original voids between contiguous particles or granules are maintained and additionally because the conditions of temperature during forming are' preferably such as to prevent superficial fusion or glazing of the surface other than at the edges, points, or areas in contact; This is attained by the use of mechanical pressure such that it is, possible to effect fusion at the points of contact at a temperature substantially belowth'at at which actual melting at atmospheric pressure or under the mere static pressure of the mass due to the force of gravity or on the non-touching areas, takes place.

Thus my inventiontakes advantage of the phenomenon whereby, up n pressing together two solid surfaces into contact with one another at elevated temperature, bonding is eflected below thenormal melting-of saidsolldxat atmospheric pressure. Accordingly the'gforegoing-objects are attained in a' simple and economical manner.

The temperature; pressure, and time of subc jection to the particular temperaturerand pres sure employed should be so icorrelated'that the product obtained is strong, rigid, andhighly. resistant to crushing or powdering. during "handling and use and Jyetnot materially, reduced in porosity (either in inter-particle voids or 'insuperficialporosity of 'each particle or granule) as at'ordinary temperature:

compared to a pellet made by'simple'compression :My process maybe carried out by pelleting the granular or pOWdered crystalIine or amorphous particles and thereby effect welding or bonding but insufllcient to destroyer materially change the granular, crystalline or other structure of the particles and insuflicient to causesubstantial reduction in porosity. Thus the individual particles are coalesced into homogeneous rigid'forms melting temperature of the'catalyst.

- Frequenly'the conditions of treatment are such that no detectable fusiontakes pla'c'e'. "Nevertheless there is;formed an extremely strong and intimate bond in which there is no line of contact,

even though incipient fusion' mayrlotatitually have taken place. H y

' The mechanical pressure exerted serves to causebonding of the particles at their pointsand areas of contact'without subjecting the rest of the particle, i. e., the main body of the catalyst,v

point without glazing of the main are of the catalystparticles.

V g i Themechanical pressureemployed'mayrange from one additional atmosphere, ixei, lp "lbs."per sq. in., upwardly. Preferably pressures of atfleast 100 lbs; per sq. in. arefemployedu' Pressures ranging'as high as 10.-000flbs.-per sq. in. maybe used.

Thepressure will depend uponthe particular catalyst being treated. It should be sufllcient under the conditions of time and temperature employed to cause the bonding described above but insuflicient to cause crushing of the individual particle'or granule. Thus; for less hard cata- "to any type ofsolid material which maybe employed for catalytic purposes and which possesses the property upon -heating undermechariical pressure of joining, weldingor binding at a temperature "substantially below 'its 'normal melting temperature. Thus' it may be applied to any solid material or mixture of materials used in catalysis. Inthe case of; liquid catalysts such as titanium tetrachloridejor'stannic chloride'the liquid may be sprayed, filmed or coated on a solid catalytic material or on'an inert carrier material and the impregnated mass. may be formed into any desired shapes in the same manner that the solid material is formedi 1 Any single material.or compound or any mix- 5 "ture of solid materials may be shaped in accordance with'my invention. For example, Silica "and alumina maybe precipitated separately from solutions of suitable salts and then mixed mechanica'lly; but preferably mixed l solutions are precipitated together, washed and dried to any desireddegree and then formed in accordance with the invention Solids which are not obtainable. thoroughly 'admixed with other'solid's maybe so mixed by mechanical means: by addingthe two.

or more materialsv in crystal or amorphous form to a ball mill, rod mill, orother pulverizing unit in case it is desired to grind the materials to finer comminution -or--to a container equipped with paddles, stirrerspbr a muller, or other apparatus for mixing pulverized soIidsand-theoperation continued-until the desired intimacy of I mixing is attained, after which the mass maybe formed'into any desired shape of catalyst units fin accordance with theinyentiom Illustrative forms into which catalysts may be shaped are shown in Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings. Many other formsand'shapes may be v employed, the prime prerequisite being that as far as practicable the catalyst'pellets be so shaped that they will not pack in the'tower'or tr'ayor other support soas to permit channeling of the fluid passingthrough the bed, andso that bridging" of passageways by'undesirable by-products occurs :to a'minimum -degree. The ideal catalyst pellet is one which exposes a'maximum' surface to contact per unit of catalyst weight or volume, and one whichcannot be packed'in such a way as to cause channeling. The various proposed forms are designed to promote the efllciency of 4o the choice of any"given'form or combination of 'forms'is determined by theconditions to be met in the use of the catalyst-= Instead ofrelatively small shapes such as pellets, I may prepar'e massive shapes such as saddles, rings, discs, plates, etc. Use of regular lys't' chamber and results ina'low pressure drop througha; catalystbedl- Methodsfo! preparation of catalysts in acby the: nature of the catalyst, its physical and chemical-properties, and by the requirementsof the' fir'iishetlproduct. For the purpose offloutlining the invention, catalysts may be'divided.

into two general classes: '(1) catalysts which are fusible, wholly orpartially at moderately elevated temperatures not excessivelyv above those to be employed in fashioning the pellet and (2) those which are relatively infusible except at temperatures much higher than those normally consideredeconomical. v v I Typical of the fusible class oi catalysts are the metal chlorides, the so-called Friedel-Crafts (is-catalysts. At elevated temperatures, especially'in the vicinity 01' their melting points, or even at temperatures considerably lower than their melting points but well above atmospherictemperatures I have found that these materials possess 7 the inherent property, varying in: degree with difierentcompounds; of coalescing suiliciently at moderately elevated temperature and preferably under moderate pressure to from rigid bodies or forms which may be used as such with resultant greater easei'n'handling and greateremciency the catalyst inthese two factors especially, and

geometrical shapes minimizes packing in a catacordancewith "'thisinvention will be determined in use as catalysts. Incipient melting, or a softening of the outer edges or surfacesof crystals or of amorphous bodies of the catalyst appears in practice to yield a condition of the material which acts as a binding medium to. ag lomerate the particles into a rigid mass whichmay be handled as a unit and which will retain its form at any temperature below the melting point of the original material and will not be substantially abraded or worn away by ordinary careful handling under the mechanical conditions ordinarily applied to solid catalysts. Physical attrition of the catalyst form or removal of it by vaporization or melting occurs at the surfaces and edges and is minimized by the compact rigid form employed. The tendency is to retain the general unit form duringthis attrition process, so that the catalyst remains approximately in such unit form throughout its life.

1 A general principle of pelleting these catalysts, therefore, is to place the material in crystal, amorphous, granular or ground form under high pressure and at elevated temperature in a mold ing or shaping machine where it is forced into the shape desired, to form a pellet or unit of the required rigidity and physical ruggedness for the purpose. .A large variety of shaping andpelleting machines is well-known to the art, and the specific means and equipment for carrying out this purpose is not a part of this invention. The temperature and pressure employed are determined by the nature of the catalytic material and the ruggedness required in the finished product. Generally the nearer the temperature to the melting point of the material the shorter is the time and the lower the pressure required to form a suitable product. Also, the nearer the temperature employed to the melting point the more compact, less porous the resulting pellet is and of conditions of preparation will be made in the light of the requirements for the finished catalyst.

In the following table are giventhe melting and the boiling points of the metal halides most widely used as catalysts inhydrocarbon catalysis.

Melting Compound Boiling point point F. F. Aluminum chloride, AlCh 361 l 374 Aluminum bromide, AlBn 505 207. 5 Ferric chloride, FeCla..--. 599 540 Aluminum iodide, A111. 680 376 Zirconium chloride, ZrC 572 i 572 Stannic chloride, SnCh. 237 27 Titanium chloride, TiCI4 277 22 Zinc chloride, ZnCi: l, 350 504 l 7.5 atmospheres pressure. 1 Suhlimes.

Frequently it is desirable to include larger or smaller percentages of other catalytic or relatively inert materials with the primary catalyst to be pelleted. The addition agents may be for the purpose of improving the bond which holds the finely divided catalyst material together, it may be for the purpose of absorbing side-reaction K 8 products selectively or to absorb foreign matter in the charge stock or reaction fluids, matter such as water vapor or liquid, tars, sulfur or other contaminants present or for any other purpose, such as a catalystpromoter or an inhibitor of undesirable'side reactions. In this case the auxiliary material may be pulverized to any desired degree, which may or may not be the'same as the state of subdivision of the main catalyst, the two pulverulent materials are intimately mixed mechanically, and the mass subjected to the desired temperature and pressure conditions to produce the finished pellet. Th temperature-pressure conditions are regulated in view of the physical characteristics of the two materials as they are when only one material is being treated. The primary and essential requirement is that the compressed and heated mass form a satisfactory pellet for the conditions under whichit is to be used, and temperature and pressure are controlled to further that end. Frequently, in fact generally, a mixture of. materialsespecially in crystalline form melts at temperaures lower than the melting point 'of either material, in which case control of the temperaturemust be careful and exact and the time of heating must be carefully controlled in order to avoid going further than the mere incipient melting which by trial and error is determined as the best condition for forming the catalyst mass of the characteristics desired. These conditions will vary for each,combination of two or more materials, and foreach combination of percentages of each in the mixture. For these reasons a comprehensive presentation of temperatures, pressures and lengths of time for heating cannot be given. However, the selection of suitable operating conditions for the carrying out of the invention will be obvious to those skilled in the art in the light of this description. I

When properly mixed, it using two or more materials, or when satisfactorily pulverized, the catalytic material may be introduced into a heatler, preferably on a moving conveyor such as a able since by so doing the edges of crystals or of irregular small particles will be heated above the average temperature of the mass to provide the desired bonding condition of g the surfaces. When the material has reached the required condition it is immediately transferred to the molds or dies, care being taken that it does not lose any appreciable temperature in the process, and is immediately subjected to pressure sufficient to form a pellet of the desired rigidity, density and mechanical strength. Methods and equipment for forming pellets of any desired shape and size are old in the art and form no part of this invention. Pressures may vary widely, the value depending on the materials processed, temperatures employed and the requirements for the finished pellet.

A preferred way of operating is to subject the mass of powdered or granular, crystalline or any traces of watertherefrom,

The examples given below are illustrative only,

ratus. Where relatively small shapes are desired, the process may be effected in a pelleting machineprovided with means for bringing the catalyst to the required temperature, for holding it there during the compression or shaping untunnel in abreeze of cold fiue'gas.

. 1ov passed into a jacketed hopper maintained at 300- 325" F'.,-from which it'is measured automatically into diesina plunger press and subjected to a pressure or to 100 pounds per square inch. The

resultant pellets, which may be in the form of "perforated cylinders /2 inch long'by %-inch diameter aredumped on an asbestos-fiber coated belt and allowed to cool while passing through a The formed pellets will-retain their shape with only slight shattering of edges when dumped" repeatedly on a mass'of the same pellets frorn'a height of three der pressure and for cooling the resulting shapes I andmeleaslngfthe pressure." Preferably cooling and release of pressure take place simultaneous ly. If, desired the cooling may be [effected by ing zone where they are cooled by a cooling fluid.

'In manycasesmere ejection of the pellets into the atmosphere -effe'cts simultaneous Cooling and feetat atmospheric temperature.

v I ,7 EXAMPLE 2 o Two hundred fifty (250) pounds of anhydrous zirconium chloride, ZrCh, and20pounds' of 16430 y releasing or electing the pellets through a coo.

release of pressure 'sufllciently to cause the pellets In the case of'larger forms, the selection of suitable apparatus will be within the skill of.

workers in the art in the lightof the foregoing;

. to retain their shape upon handling, upon paci --:v I ing intoa bed, and during conversion therewith;

' The size of the particles orgranules of catalyst. I

1 material treated in accordance with my invention may vary widely, from say 200 imesh up to several inches in average diameter. It is preferred to use initial material so graded in accordance with known principles as," to give substantial interparticle voids i. e. at least, 20% by volume of voids. Frequently particles of substantially the same size will be most desirable. l a m 1 In the case of highly volatile hygroscopic metal halide catalysts, especially aluminum chloride, it

is frequently desirable to blend therewith amin'or percentage of another metal halide which is not I primarily catalytic, for'example alkaline earth chlorides, for example calcium chlorideor mag nesiumchloride. This material acts to raise t he melting point and lower the .vapor pressure of the aluminum chloride and also acts to remove v and this invention is in no wise to-be limited by these examples which merely illustrate without limiting-the Principle of the process. Care must be taken to avoid toomuch melting, particularly with metal-halidecatalysts, and thus obtaining a sintered mass if held under pressure,'or 01' volatilizing too large quantities of the material at atmospheric. pressure.- ,As' stated above, melting must be at most incipient; barely enough to form ...a bond which,;underthe pressure of the forming die, cements the-particles together without closv,ing the macroscopic openings-or destroying the porous structure of the catalyst.

'I'hesurfaces-of the mold may be advantageous-' of the pellet or shape.

ame 1 Two, hundred (200), pounds of anhydrous aluminum chlorideand 10 pounds of calcium chloride are crushed .between corrugated rolls :until lyroughened or corrugated to increase the surface As shown-in Fig. "1, the pellets may be of almost any form, such as cylin- .drical with large ratio of inner diameter to outer .diameter. .The cylinders may have'a multiplicity a of longitudinal holes therethrough to increase contact surface. H

' Melting if point Alumina, A] O 4, 082 Aluminum sulfide, ails. 2,012 Calcium chloride, 0:01: 1, 422 Cesium chloride, CsCL; 1, 195 Cesium nitrate. GINO; 777 Chromium oxi e, CnOr 3, 614' Chromium trio: e,- O 385 Cobalticoxrde, 00,0: 1, 643 (d; Cupric oxide, GuO l, 879 ((1. Iron oxlde,'--Fez0a 2. 849 Lead bromide PbBlz 1 703 Lead oxide, Ph0. 1,630 Lithium chloride, LiCl l, 153

' Magnesium chloride, MgCl l, 306

Manganese sulfate, MnSOL, l, 292

. Mercuric chloride, 'Hg'Glaui'. 529

,,Mo1 vbdenum trioxide; M001" 1. 463 v Nickelous oxide, NiO. .l 3, 794 o Phosphorus pentoxidc, P105. 1,045'

. Phosphoruspcntasulfide, P18 529 Silicondioxide,$01.11.... 3,

' Strontium chloride, 51-0 1, 603 Strontium nitrate, Sr (N 03) a l, 058 Thorium oxide, Thor- 5.072 Tun sten trioxide. W0: 2,. 683 Vanadium tetraoxide, V 'l, 573 Zinc oxi le.'ZnO. .4 l 3, 272

- Zirconium oxide, ZlOz 5. 400

I considerably higher meltin points.

shows the melting-points of various metal oxides,

mesh alu'minayAlzOz, are mixedintimately in a revolving tumbler drum, and heated by hot flue gas to 540-'550F.-' for about 30 seconds and then pelleted in a rounded diamond die press at essentially .the same" temperature and at 50-100 pounds per square inch. After coolingto atmospheric temperature'these briquettes, T g-inch by %-inch,withstoodeight cyclesjof loading in a reaction chamber, reaction'period, removal from chamber. and regeneration, with very little attritionloss.

Somewhat different conditions obtain when pelleting metal oxides, sulfides and salts with Table 2 sulfides and salts frequentlyemployed as catalysts in difierentprocesses involving hydrocarbon reactions."

Table 2.

1.681" l B. P."

' When the incipient melting point of the cat- "alyst in; for example, a finely or coarsely pulverized state is higher than the temperature to 1 whichit-isipracticable to heat thematerial, it

I-bBCOmGS desirableto employ another or binding material of lower melting'p'oint, admixed with the prim'ary'catalytic material, to obtain the advantages, of-porous structure, strength and easy and convenient handling sought in this invention. The binder material may be catalytically inert or preferably may have a promoter or activator effect on the primary catalyst. Many metal oxides, such as silica, alumina, chromic oxide, etc., may be precipitated from solutions of their salts, washed and dried and may be used as such in pulverized or lump form as effective catalysts, the degree of subdivision being determined by the conditions of drying, or by the particle size obtained by crushing, grinding, etc. after the drying. 1

More frequently, however, solid catalysts so prepared and used in accordance with prior practice possess the disadvantage of small surface per unit of weight or volume, if the catalyst is retained in relatively large lumps or masses, or that of too close packing and too high resistance to the fiow of fluids therethrough when employed in a state of fine pulverization. In the case of formation of tarry deposits on the catalyst, the finely divided mass may become entirely impervious to the passage of fluids in a relatively short reaction period, necessitating frequent regeneration with consequenttime loss and unit efliciency reduction. If such catalysts are made into paste form and in this condition rolled, pressed or extruded to desired shapes, the drying of the formed paste may have the eifect of forming a binder eifect tending to retain the desired shape. This method has the disadvantage of destroying in large measure the macroscopic or microscopic porous condition in which otherwise the catalyst may be found, resulting in a considerable decrease in catalyst efllciency.

These disadvantages are largely eliminated or minimized by following the principles of this invention. A metal hydroxide, such as alumina, silica, chromic oxide or similar material may be precipitated from solution by any of the methods well known in the art. A mixture of two or more such catalytic materials may be precipitated in intimate mixture, and the mixture filtered off, dried and pulverized by any satisfactory means. Or, a mixture of hydroxides, oxides or of sulfides may be precipitated in intimate mixture, one component being of high melting point and the other of relatively low melting point. The mixed precipitates may be washed and dried in the conventional manner and pulverized to any desired degree of fineness in a suitablemlll or grinder. The degree of fineness of the particles is dictated by the conditions under-which the catalyst is to be employed, especially by the nature of the undesirable by-products which are formed during reaction.

In the case of a single catalytic product of low melting point, such as cesium nitrate, lead bromide, phosphorus pentoxide, or molybdenum trioxide, etc., the material may be'exposed to a temperature approaching its melting point long enough to produce the required incipient fusing, and then while at said temperature formed into pellets of the desired shape in a die maintained at the required temperature for forming a satisfactory produ'ct. When pelleting the highermelting materials such as chromic oxide, alumina, iron oxide or thoria, it is desirable to include therewith a relatively small percentage of a lower-melting material which may also have some catalytic effect, as lead oxide, manganese sulfate, or molybdic oxide, to give a. mixture which reaches its incipient fusing point at a lower temperature. This lower-melting material may be added in small quantity by saturating the metal oxide or other material with a saturated solution of the material, the excess solution allowed to drain of! and the mass dried and heated to incipient 12 fusion, followed by pelleting by any acceptable process. Or, the two solid materials may be mixed intimately by mechanical means and the operation continued as with the dry mixture referred to above. Generally such a mixture of materials shows a melting point considerably below that exhibited by either product alone, and the lower temperature of heatingrequired to produce the desired state makes for a less expensive operation. The following examples illustrate the principle without limiting in any way its application.

Exam ne 3 Five hundred (500) pounds of unsintered, black chromic oxide is crushed to pass a 12-20 mesh screen and mixed with five per cent of finely ground molybdic oxide and the mixture heated while passing slowly through a mufiie furnace to 1000-1200 F., the mix being maintained at the maximum temperature for a period not exceeding about 15 seconds. Without cooling the mixture appreciably, it is measured into a die press, the dies being heated to800-l000" F., and subjected to a pressure of pounds per square inch for a period of ten seconds. The pellets, cylinders of corrugated outer wall /2-ll'lCh outer and 4-inch inner diameter, are cooled to room temperature on an asbestos-surfaced belt while passing through a tunnel in a blast of c00led arid fiue gas and are stored in closed bins until ready for use.

ExAMrLE 4 Granulated nickelous oxide is covered with a saturated aqueous solution of cesium chloride, the excess solution allowed to drain off and the mass dried at 250 F. The impregnated oxide is heated in a neutralatmosphere to as high as 1000 F. average temperature by direct radiation of heat on the surface of the granulated mass, maintained in a thin bed /2-inch thick, for 10-20 seconds. The massis measured into a heated die press and formed into perforated cylinders under a pressure of 100 pounds per square inch during a period of approximately 10 seconds, is cooled in a dry neutral atmosphere and stored in the same at mosphere until ready for use.

I claim:

1. A process of forming a substantially rugged and pervious mass of a solid catalytic material comprising a normally solid Friedel-Crafts metal halide catalyst, which comprises heating a particulate mixture comprising solid particles of such a metal halide, and containing at least 20% by volume of inter-particle voids, to a temperature below the meltingpoint' of the components of said mixture and, while the particles are maintainedat such temperature, subjecting said mixture to a mechanical pressure just sufficient to effect incipient fusing of said particles at their points of contact without substantial melting or disintegration of said particles and without substantial reduction in volume of voids between the particles.

2. A process of forming a substantially rugged and pervious mass of asolid catalytic material comprising solid aluminum chloride, which comprises heating a particulate mixture comprising solid particles of aluminum chloride, and containing at least 20% by volume of inter-particle voids. to a temperature below the melting point of aluminum chloride and, while the particles are maintained at such temperature, subjecting said mixture to a mechanical pressure just sufficient to effect incipient fusing of said particles at their points of contact without substantial melting or disintegration of said particles and without substantial reduction in volume of voids between the particles. I l

3. A process of forming a substantially rugged and pervious mass of formed catalyst particles consisting of a mixture of aluminum chloride and calcium chloride, which comprises heating a mixture of solid particles of aluminum chlorideand of calcium chloride, and containing at least 20% by volume of inter-particle voids, to a temperature below the melting point and within the range 10 between the particles. v

ARCH L. FOSTER. 

